Cocoa Cupcakes

Being that I LOVE to bake (I could seriously bake something almost every day), I decided to take on the challenge of using tofu in a baked good for the "How to Tofu" recipe challenge. I wanted to create a treat that put the health benefits of tofu into something you could enjoy any day of the week. My vision was serving these to kids after school as an alternative to cookies.

This is probably the most "blind" I've been going in to developing a recipe. With a little bit of research under my belt, I just proceeded with a-little-of-this and and a-little-of-that mentality until I got a batter I thought would work for cupcakes. (Did you know that you can use extra firm tofu to replace butter in cupcakes? I didn't either until I tried it in this recipe.)

I put these mini cakes into the oven and crossed my fingers. 12 minutes later I pulled out perfect looking chocolate cupcakes. After cooling off, I bit into exactly what I was hoping to create - a moist, rich cupcake. Success!

These cupcakes are almost vegan. If you wanted to go vegan, just omit the egg. I think they will turn out fine, just slightly more dense. These are also low calorie at just 43 calories per mini cupcake. The rich chocolate flavor is very satisfying, so you may be good with just one, but don't need to worry about eating two or three.

Now, the biggest test I faced was whether these were kid friendly treats. So I brought a couple to Jackson's play date today. As soon as these cakes were plopped into the hands of these two boys, they were down the hatch and asking for more. Success, again!

I hope you will give these Cocoa Cupcakes a try. I honestly may never make chocolate cupcakes any other way.

Cocoa Cupcakes

1 package extra firm silken tofu, drained

1/2 cup light vanilla soy milk

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup all-pupose flour

1 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon Kosher salt

3/4 cup cocoa powder

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips (recommend mini chips for mini cupcakes)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray muffin pan with nonstick spray or line with muffin papers.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flours, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cocoa powder and sugar.
In a blender, add tofu and soy milk and puree until very smooth. Add vanilla and egg and pulse until just incorporated, about 3-4 pulses.
Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients until blended. Fold in chocolate chips.
Spoon batter into muffin tins, only filling up cups to 75% of full capacity.
Bake mini cupcakes for 12 minutes and regular cupcakes for 17 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.
Cool in pan for 3-4 minutes then remove and finish cooling on wire rack. Can serve warm or room temperature.

Make 48 mini cupcakes or 18 regular cupcakes.

Nutrition Facts per mini cupcake: 48 calories, 0.8 g fat, 4.4 mg cholesterol, 89 mg sodium, 8.6 g carbs, 0.8 g fiber, 4.8 g sugar, 1.5 g protein

Disclosure: By posting this recipe I am entering a recipe contest sponsored by The Soyfoods Council and am eligible to win prizes associated with the contest. I was not compensated for my time.

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